Overall Rating	Gold
Overall Score	77.43
Liaison	Elida Erickson
Submission Date	Feb. 28, 2022

STARS v2.2

University of California, Santa Cruz
OP-18: Waste Minimization and Diversion

Status	Score	Responsible Party
	3.65 / 8.00	Chris Leverenz Superintendent Grounds

"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Parts 1 and 2. Waste per person

Figures needed to determine total waste generated (and diverted):

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Materials recycled	631.22 Metric tons	436.36 Metric tons
Materials composted	859.74 Metric tons	0 Metric tons
Materials donated or re-sold	494.60 Metric tons	375.57 Metric tons
Materials disposed through post-recycling residual conversion	0 Metric tons	0 Metric tons
Materials disposed in a solid waste landfill or incinerator	1,870.89 Metric tons	2,523.79 Metric tons
Total waste generated	3,856.44 Metric tons	3,335.72 Metric tons

If reporting post-recycling residual conversion, provide:

A brief description of the residual conversion facility:

N/A

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):

	Start Date	End Date
Performance Period	July 1, 2018	June 30, 2019
Baseline Period	July 1, 2004	June 30, 2005

If end date of the baseline year/period is 2004 or earlier, provide:

A brief description of when and why the waste generation baseline was adopted:

It matches the baseline used for prior reporting purposes.

Figures needed to determine "Weighted Campus Users”:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Number of students resident on-site	8,691	6,088
Number of employees resident on-site	203	169
Number of other individuals resident on-site	643	415
Total full-time equivalent student enrollment	19,147	14,646
Full-time equivalent of employees	3,789	3,515
Full-time equivalent of students enrolled exclusively in distance education	0	0
Weighted campus users	20,068.50	15,600

Total waste generated per weighted campus user:

	Performance Year	Baseline Year
Total waste generated per weighted campus user	0.19 Metric tons	0.21 Metric tons

Percentage reduction in total waste generated per weighted campus user from baseline:

10.13

Part 3. Waste diverted from the landfill or incinerator

Percentage of materials diverted from the landfill or incinerator by recycling, composting, donating or re-selling, performance year:

51.49

Percentage of materials diverted from the landfill or incinerator (including up to 10 percent attributable to post-recycling residual conversion):

51.49

In the waste figures reported above, has the institution recycled, composted, donated and/or re-sold the following materials?:

	Yes or No
Paper, plastics, glass, metals, and other recyclable containers	Yes
Food	Yes
Cooking oil	Yes
Plant materials	Yes
Animal bedding	No
White goods (i.e. appliances)	Yes
Electronics	Yes
Laboratory equipment	Yes
Furniture	Yes
Residence hall move-in/move-out waste	Yes
Scrap metal	Yes
Pallets	Yes
Tires	Yes
Other (please specify below)	Yes

A brief description of other materials the institution has recycled, composted, donated and/or re-sold:

Mattresses and toner cartridges

Optional Fields

Active Recovery and Reuse

Materials intended for disposal but subsequently recovered and reused on campus, performance year:

494.60 Metric tons

Recycling Management

Does the institution use single stream recycling to collect standard recyclables in common areas?:

Does the institution use dual stream recycling to collect standard recyclables in common areas?:

Does the institution use multi-stream recycling to collect standard recyclables in common areas?:

Yes

Contamination and Discard Rates

Average contamination rate for the institution’s recycling program:

A brief description of any recycling quality control mechanisms employed:

While no contamination rate has been reported by recycling facility, a Material Characterization Study was conducted in 2020 which estimated recycling contamination at 11%. UCSC strives to eliminate as much contamination as possible. In the past two years UCSC has created more inclusive and accessible zero waste signage; incorporating actual pictures of common items and included three languages. UCSC also changed recycling facilities to one that can process more items, thus transforming certain contamination into acceptable items. The Green Office Certification and Green Lab programs conduct waste audits and discuss results with each office/lab to educate and reduce contamination at the source.

Programs and Initiatives

A brief description of the institution's waste-related behavior change initiatives:

Multi-bin stations (clean paper, recycling, composting, landfill) across campus have large signage with pictures of items related to each bin. UCSC launched a university-wide recycling contamination committee to increase recycling diversion from landfill. External consultants assisted in the development of a long-term zero waste plan for campus. We're currently in the process of implementing that plan.

A brief description of the institution's waste audits and other initiatives to assess its materials management efforts and identify areas for improvement:

UCSC underwent a materials characterization study in Jan. 2020 to evaluate our diversion and contamination rates of our waste system. Ninety-two samples were taken over a five-day period in Jan. 2020 from 25 locations across campus. This characterization study supported the findings and recommendations in the campus-wide Zero Waste Plan released in Sept. 2020.

A brief description of the institution's procurement policies designed to prevent waste:

We have reduced the number of deliveries to campus from office supply vendors and this has not only reduced packaging due to delivery consolidation but also lowered CO2 emissions.

In addition, every purchase order issued includes the following language: ***Supplier: Please ship responsibly by ensuring your product and its packaging can be reused or recycled.***

We also apply our standard terms and conditions whenever possible. These terms include: ARTICLE 25 – ENVIRONMENTALLY PREFERABLE PRODUCTS. Supplier will use environmentally preferable products and services (i.e., products and services with a lesser or reduced effect on human health and the environment), to the maximum possible extent consistent with the Agreement. These terms can be found at: https://www.ucop.edu/procurement-services/policies-forms/uc-terms-conditions-12-14-21.pdf

A brief description of the institution's surplus department or formal office supplies exchange program that facilitates reuse of materials:

The UCSC Receiving Services Surplus Store re-sells used office supplies, furniture and other goods. The Surplus Store receives unwanted items and sells them as-is for reuse within the campus as well as to the greater Santa Cruz community.

A brief description of the institution's platforms to encourage peer-to-peer exchange and reuse:

---

A brief description of the institution's limits on paper and ink consumption:

UCSC does not offer free printing in any of the computer labs or libraries.

Access to printing in Learning Technologies computer labs is automatically available to current UCSC students. Charges are automatically billed directly to students' UCSC accounts and will appear in their university bill (via student portal); no cards or cash are needed to print.

A brief description of the institution's initiatives to make materials available online by default rather than printing them:

MyUCSC is UCSC's online academic information portal for students, faculty, and staff. Students use MyUCSC to enroll in classes, check their grades, view their financial aid and billing accounts, and update their personal information. Faculty can view and print their class rosters, email their classes, and post grades in MyUCSC. Staff use MyUCSC to view and update student information.

A brief description of the institution's program to reduce residence hall move-in/move-out waste:

Since 2012, we have had a Move Out waste reduction program that starts with late Fall Quarter education, late Spring Quarter swap events as well as containers available for donations during finals week (provided by Goodwill, Hope Services, 2nd Harvest Food Back and university bins for items sent to Homeless Services). Throughout Spring Quarter residents are encouraged to take items home early, recycle extra items early and when they are done with finals - take the rest home.

A brief description of the institution's programs or initiatives to recover and reuse other materials intended for disposal:

Large tree material is ground into wood chips for extensive use as mulch. Grass from most turf areas is mulched in place.

Website URL where information about the institution’s waste minimization and diversion efforts is available:

http://sustainability.ucsc.edu/

Additional documentation to support the submission:

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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

UCSC has moved to a single-stream recycling system but reported a multi-stream waste system as that was the infrastructure in place at the time of the waste data we reported in this report. We used FY 2019 waste figures as that was our last full year of waste data that wasn't impacted by the pandemic.

UCSC uses load-weighing technology on the primary waste streams, so directly-weighed values are stored in an on-campus database which staff uses for reporting.

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.